Silent Apartments (MaleTrollsXReader)
by Pen of Rage
Summary: The goddamn noise from your neighbor is going to drive you crazy! ... Or it was, until it stopped. Wonder what the hell is wrong with them? Reuploaded from Deviantart!
1. Chapter 1

The silence from the apartment next to yours made you incredibly nervous. You sat there, nibbling your bottom lip until it was bleeding. Usually you would have welcomed silence over the usual noises that leaked from your neighbor's abode but now the lack of sound threw you into worry. It was never quiet. Even in the middle of the night it was never quiet. You had always held back any complaints about the noise, after all, you thought that your neighbor was… well, suffice to say you had somewhat of a crush on the troll across the hall. It didn't matter to you that he had gray skin most other people in the building found weird, it didn't matter that he had candy corn colored horns, hell you would go so far as to say that the noises from the flat next to yours comforted you. Plus you got a discount on rent because of the 'undesirable' neighbors. Now all you were greeted by was silence. God how you missed the sound of…


	2. Keyboard clatter

To be honest you had no idea how tapping on the keyboard could make so much noise but somehow your neighbor Sollux Captor had perfected the art. He wasn't planning on leaving anytime soon because this particular apartment building had the fastest and strongest wifi connection in the city. You had no idea why they would have allowed Sollux to stay in your building when he kept bees but you didn't argue. For all you knew with his crazy-ass mood swings he would send his binary speaking bees to murder you. You didn't know a whole lot about the bees, but you could wager that they would probably succeed. You had seen the bright purple bees during your few trips into his apartment.

He was kind of a computer genius so if you had a problem you went to him. You tried to fix the problems by yourself, as he didn't seem to enjoy your company a whole lot. Still three times in the last month you had had found yourself knocking on his apartment door. Somehow each time a rather nasty virus had found its way into your computer. As much as it pained you to say so, you had no idea how they were getting in. You had doubled your efforts against it, putting up several additional firewalls. You would knock on his door and almost immediately be greeted by him opening the door with a frown. His 3D-like sunglasses would always glint at you as if wanting to know why you were bugging him. You would extend your "hu_th_ktop" and then you would "t_h_it down and try not to _th_crew anything el_th_e up". It was never an easy fix and would always take hours away from his "important programing that you wouldn't underith/i" and you wouldn't hear the end of it for the duration of your visit. On the other hand he always seemed to have your favorite drink and favorite flavor of chips at the ready as well as your favorite x-box game ready to play. While he messes around with your laptop you would sit on the couch, playing the online game and kicking butt while enjoying a snack and drink. By the time you got bored of the game he would have it repaired.

He was always kind enough to fix your laptop for you and if something was wrong you couldn't just leave him. You quickly looked around your apartment for your shoes and upon finding them you headed out. You walked down the hallway that linked the two apartments. Across the hallway you could hear the couple screaming at each other in 1334 and the squawking parrot of 1336. It took you only thirty seconds to reach 1337. You knocked on the door, expecting to see the bothered Sollux open the door. Instead of silence or the sight of Sollux, you heard him snapping through the door.

"It took you long enough to get your _th_tupid a_th__th_ here! Open the door and get in_th_ide!" That was odd but you didn't argue. You slowly opened the door to see the familiar layout of the living room. The television was buzzing with the familiar start music of your favorite game and a bag of chips sitting on the side table. Sollux was under his desk, messing with wires. "Hand me that _th_tupid _th_plitter." Without a word you handed him the cord splitter. "Your plan _th_uck_th _by the way, KK. (Name) i_th_ not a_th_ terrible of a programmer a_th_ you and doe_th_n't _th_how up when you try to give her virur_th_e_th_. _Th_o I have to hack her my_th_elf becau_th_e you're _th_uch a crappy hacker."

"Excuse me?" He jumped at the sound of your voice, slamming his head into the desk. If you were to say you were okay with him hacking you, it would be the biggest lie ever. The thought of him giving you the viruses that had plagued your computer pissed you off to your center.

"(NN)?" He pulled back from the desk, glasses glinting at you. "What the hell? You ju_th_t open the door to _th_omeone_th_ apartment without a_th_king—"

"You told me to open the door and get inside. What the fuck do you mean you have to hack me personally? You've been hacking my computer and giving me viruses? What the fuck is wrong with you!?"

"KK tried to _th_end you virui_th_e_th_ but he _th_ucki_th_ _th_o…"

"You sent me them." You were hurt by this. Your neighbor, the guy you through you could trust, was hacking you. Last week he was the one who deleted your twenty page paper for class? You cancelled a date with the cute blonde in science to retype that!

"(NN) I didn't—"

"Save it. You… You're… fuck you, Captor." You turned, attempting to run out of the apartment. Unfortunately for you, that wasn't going to happen. Red and blue sparks flew around the door, keeping it shut. You turned to him, anger burning in your veins. "Let me out Captor." You could see the sparks from his eyes as he looked back at you. He looked like he wanted to say something but the sparks dropped from his eyes and faded from the door. You make quick work of it, walking out of the apartment and back to yours. Within twenty minutes the keyboard clacking resumed from the apartment. What an ass. How dare he hack you! You opened your computer to find a message from Sollux.

twinArmageddons (TA) began trolling ChumHandle (CH) at 7:42.

TA: You diidn't have two run out liike that.

CH: Fuck you, Sollux. You son of a bitch! You hack my computer then just play it off like it wasn't a total invasion of privacy!

CH: Why don't you just get Nepeta to hide in my air vent if you wanna see what I'm doing so badly, you creep!

TA: 2o now II'm creepy? You diidn't thiink that way when you brought your hu2ktop two me two fiix.

CH: I DIDN'T KNOW YOU WERE THE ONE WHO HACKED IT!

TA: II diidn't the fiirst tiime.

CH: Oh well that makes everything alright. You just did it every time after that, right?

TA: Two be faiir, KK wa2 the one who told me two. II 2hould have known better than two liisten two that a22hole.

CH: Why would Karkat want to hack me? It doesn't even make sense! The words you are typing do not make sense Sollux!

TA: What do you want me two type, (NN)?

CH: A fucking apology would be a start.

TA: II'm 2orry II hacked you becau2e II wanted two 2pend tiime wiith you.

twinArmageddons (TA) ceased trolling ChumHandle (CH) at 8:04.

CH: …You should be.

You shut the lid to your laptop and sighed, leaning back in the chair. More key clacking. As much as you wanted to be mad at your nerd of a neighbor, you couldn't. You practically slapped your laptop from the desk and stormed back out. He thought he could just say something idiotic like that and log off? Oh no. You gripped the door and threw it open.

"Sollux you—" You stopped. He was type-yelling at Karkat but when you stormed in he turned to you. Clear yellow streaks ran down his face. "Sollux?"

"You don't want to hang out that_th_ fine but you don't have to come back and rub it in."

"Sollux I never said I didn't want to hang out." You were trying to glare at him but couldn't do it with the soft yellow tears. You were walking closer to him. "You didn't have to hack me to hang out."

"But you never come over otherwi_th_e."

"That's because you always act like I annoy you every time I come over."

"You are annoying." You frowned, now about four feet from him. "But you are al_th_o kind of cool I gue_th__th_. Why el_th_e do you think I even keep your favorite drink? That _th_hit is repulsive." You took another step only to trip, falling forward. The yellow-blooded troll seemed almost like he was expecting it and caught you. The way he did, however, caused his chair to tip backwards and send both of you spiraling to the ground. You held your breath as you waited to hit, but the ground never came.

Sollux was on top of you and the two of you were suspended in mid-air by blue and red flicks of electricity. He pulled you into a rather fierce kiss, as if he wanted to get as much out of it as he could before you rejected him. It took you only a moment to realize your position, get over your shock, and kiss him back. His lips tasted sweet like honeycomb. The kiss instantly softened and one hand played with the hem of your shirt while the other tangled in your hair. You moaned out softly and he took the opportunity to slip his tongue in and carefully explore every inch of yours. You had let him in without even a challenge, intensifying the kiss by entwining your hands with his short black hair. He groaned back into your mouth, craving more of your taste. Your hands brushed up against his candy-corn color horns and his eyes snapped open. The psionic powers that were holding you up dropped as soon as you touched the appendages, sending you both to the ground with a thud.

"Sollux!" You laughed. "What the hell was—" He moved over you again and kissed you with renewed vigor. You gasped as he began to grope your chest. You had never let a guy go so far but Sollux… _Oh god!_ Your mind cried out against you as he slipped the hand under your shirt to get a better angle. He broke the kiss, gasping for air as he toyed with your bra, not letting up on your own pleasure.

"I don't know if I feel red or black for you…" He informed you. "_Th_metime_th _I can't fucking _th_tand you… but even then I don't want to be without you."

"Oh god, Sollux, shut the fuck up." You grabbed his collar and pulled him into another deep kiss, wrapping your arms around his neck like it was their rightful place. He chuckled, standing up while not breaking the kiss to close his laptop. You never saw the screen so you would never know the last bit of romcom advice that Karkat gave to Sollux.

CG: LOOK SHIT FOR BRAINS, YOU FUCKED UP GETTING CAUGHT BUT IT'S NOT THE END OF THE FUCKING WORLD. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS LET HER SEE YOU CRY. IF THERE IS ONE THING I KNOW IT'S THAT EARTH WOMEN LOVE SPINELESS MEATSACKS WHO BAWL OUT THEIR FEELINGS.

TA: And how do you expect me two do that?

CG: JUST THINK OF SOMETHING THAT MAKES YOU FUCKING UNHAPPY! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO KNOW! EITHER FIND SOMETHING THAT MAKES YOU UNHAPPY ENOUGH TO CRY OF FUCKING FORGET ABOUT GETTING HER TO BE YOUR MATESPRIT/KISMESIS/WHATEVER THE FUCK YOU WANNA BE WITH THAT WEIRD PINK GIRL.

The message had been typed a few moments before you came storming into the apartment. The thing that made him sad enough to cry, sad enough so you could forgive him, sad enough so you would stay—was the thought of him losing you.


	3. A Different Kind of Silence

Sure the apartment next to yours was usually quiet but this was a different kind of silent altogether. Kurloz Makara usually quiet but there was always the noise of him moving around or something—even if it was only small noises. For the past few hours, however, there was nothing. What worried you even more was that for the past several weeks his girlfriend hadn't been around much and was showing up less and less. You knew he had a girlfriend, but that didn't really ease the ache of your heart when you passed by her.  
Kurloz couldn't talk and he couldn't write in any human language. The only way of communication was sign language. You had been practicing it since the day he moved in. It was a pretty weak reason to learn a completely new language but you supposed it had started out because you didn't want him to feel so alone. At first he was kind of surprised that you could communicate with him, but after long you were giving him some excellent recommendations of places around this city. He, in turn, would show you quicker ways to sign certain words or phrases and make sign language more natural for you.  
He had lived in your apartment building for nearly seven months and he was possibly the nicest neighbor you had ever had. If Kurloz was in some kind of trouble you wanted to help him. It took you only a moment to slip out into the hallway. It took you only a moment to reach apartment 206. You knocked, though after thinking about it for a moment you had no idea why. It wasn't exactly like he was going to yell at you to come in. You slowly pushed open the door.  
"Kurloz? You here?" Again you mentally slapped yourself. "I am such a dumbass." You half laughed, shaking your head. It didn't matter, however, because you saw him. He was kneeling under his oak desk, the thing that weighed nearly five hundred pounds. Under the desk and in his hand was a single horn, you guessed that Gamzee was over earlier and left it. "Kurloz, are you—Kurloz?" You blinked, the tips of his long candy-colored horns were peaking from the top of the wood. "Uh…heh… Kurloz? Are um… are you stuck?" You were trying to hold back the giggles, Mirthful Messiahs you were trying. He began to sign to you.  
**Would you mind getting the motherfucking superintendent for me, sis?**  
"Uh…" You were biting your lips so hard you thought for sure it was going to bleed. "Kurloz it's 4th of July weekend, um… he's not going to be here until Tuesday. You want me to text Muelin?"  
**Muelin is no longer my motherfucking matesprit so it's not her problem anymore.** The familiar feeling of being the world's biggest asshole once again settled well on you.  
"…Oh." Mixed emotions ran through you as you spoke the quiet word. If he wasn't with Meulin anymore that meant he was free, right? On the other hand, thinking like that it was no wonder the feeling of being a douche fit with you. "I'm sorry."  
**Don't be. There was just someone that caused more of those motherfucking red feelings.** Meulin had found someone else she liked better than Kurloz? Who the hell was that Casanova?  
"H-here." You bit back another small laugh as you moved under the table with him, desperate to change the subject. "Can you move at all?" He made a motion that caused you to lose it. He tried to shake his head. You swear with everything you had that you didn't mean to laugh but he was just too cute! He looked like a five year old hiding in a corner and when he tried to shake his head you couldn't stand it! "Oh my god, Kurloz!" You were laughing so hard you thought for sure you were going to hyperventilate. Much to your shock, when you finally stopped laughing he didn't appear to be angry at all. Infact, a small smile played on his stitched lips.  
**This motherfucker's never heard you laugh before, sis.**  
"Sorry." You apologized, looking down a bit.  
**I don't want to be hearing that sorry business.** He signed to you. **It's a motherfucking miraculous sound. You should make it more often.** You were blushing darkly now and cursed the close proximity.  
"Here, hold still." You really had no way to go about trying to remove his horns from the table so you put your hands on the top of his head and pushed down. If it would have worked it would have been a miracle. No miracles were found. You just ended up slipping in the confined space and slamming your forehead into Kurloz's face. "Ow! Son of a—yeah, okay, no. This is stupid. Just hang on." You backed up from under the table and moved on top of it. You couldn't see Kurloz but it stood to reason that if you pushed down on the horns then he would come out. You gripped the parts of the horns just below the tips. Kurloz was squirming under the table and he proceeded to thrash about even more as your grip tightened. You were forcing the horns down the sheer will at this point as he began to whip wildly under the table. "Hang on a second!" You let go of his bone-like appendages and ran to your apartment, pulling out the one thing that could help in this situation; a stick of butter. When you ran back in, Kurloz was waving violently at you, trying to get your attention as he frantically signed with the other hand.  
**(Name)! (Name), stop—**  
"I got this, Kurloz, this will totally work." You were ignoring his signs, thinking he was probably just cursing at you for hurting his horns. He had told you once in one of your many conversations that they were tender. You climbed back on the table, spreading the slippery substance over his horns and working it into the holes of the table. You could hear Kurloz angry growls and began to contemplate if you ever wanted him out from under the table. Once you got him out he'd probably murder you. Then again, if you left him there you'd be in for it for sure when he got out. You attempted to get a grip on his horns again as your fingers kept sliding across the slick surface. More growling. He was getting impatient and pissed. Though you had never seen Kurloz angry, you didn't think that you were going to enjoy the angry signing from him. "Alright!" You finally got a grip. "Pull down on 3. 1…2…3!" He jerked down and pain ripped through your hand like a serrated blade. The tip of his horn was like a razor, cutting at least half an inch into the palm of your hand and moving all the way down. Instantly you gripped your hand, getting to your feet from the table as tears of pain flooded your e/c eyes. Kurloz scrambled out from under the table like it was on fire. His normally yellow outter eye was a dark orange.  
**(Name)! What were… you…** His signing slowed down as his eyes landed on your hand. Blood now covered your entire arm and dripped from your elbow to land on your shoes.  
"S-Sorry." You were hoping that your voice didn't sound shaky from the pain ripping through your senses. "I didn't mean to get blood on your horn, Kurloz." Kurloz breathing was still heavy as he briefly watched the blood drip from your arm. He shook his head, pulling you towards the bathroom. "What are—SON OF A BITCH!" You screamed at the top of your lungs when he suddenly turned on the hot water and stuck your bleeding hand under it. You then proceeded to spill a slur of curse words the likes of which has not been heard since the days of pirate renegades. He didn't let go of your arm, even as you attempted to pull away and tear off his hand. Of course you were no match for him, but the meant nothing to you when you felt this much pain. "Jesus fucking Christ on a plaid donkey chasing after Buda, let go! Look if this is about the horn thing, I'm fucking sorry!" With his other hand he opened the bathroom sink and took out a bottle of peroxide. Your eyes widened and you regrouped your efforts to scramble. Dead weight. You childishly buckled your legs, expecting him to let go. Instead you found yourself dangling off the ground, him holding your weight with one arm like you were a pillow. "No, no, Kurloz, come on man, don't—FUUUUUUUUUCK!" Your toes curled as the necessary liquid bubbled around the wound, making you yell out painfully. You looked up at Kurloz, eyes overflowing with tears.  
**You need stitches.**  
"Kurloz, I am not getting stitches." You were terrified of doctors. "I will fucking lose my hand before I go to that place." He shook his head.  
**I have everything, you just have to sit still and not try to motherfucking run.** A common fact of why you hated the doctor was needles. You were about to tell him to fuck off when he signed again. **Trust me. If there is one think I can motherfucking do it's stitches. I have to change them every day.** He pointed to his mouth. You bit your lip nervously but nodded.  
"Just… take it easy, okay?" He nodded, the orange almost completely drained from his eyes as you sat on the edge of the bathtub. You extended your hand after he pulled out the common items. Blood was still seeping out of your wound but he didn't even seem to care. You turned your head away from your own injury as Kurloz pulled out the needle. You didn't want to see it and you didn't want to think about it. God you wished you didn't have red blood. Red blood was the lowest on the Hemospectrum because it wasn't even on it! You knew that Kurloz was only trying to be nice and he was probably just as angry that you had gotten your blood all over his left horn and floor. Your stomach felt sick at the thought of him being angry at you. He tapped your shoulder and caused you to break out of your day dream.  
**See? That wasn't so motherfucking painful was it?** You rolled your eyes at Kurloz when you saw your blood beginning to stain his horn.  
"Oh crap! Uh—" You grabbed a washcloth with warm water and before he could get a say in it you wrapped it over the horn with the blood. He let out a muffled groan.  
**(Name) when you up and touch my horn like that…** Another snarl escaped his shut mouth.  
"I know, it hurts, I'm sorry again. I just… I don't want my blood to stain your horn. It—" You blinked in shock and hurt as he shoved you off of him. Why did you have to be such a fuck-up? He furiously began to cut the stitches that held his mouth shut. Oh hell. He was so pissed he was actually going to yell at you? You frantically began to apologize for your blood being on him and for tugging at his horns. You were pretty sure you were rambling but it didn't matter at this point. His eyes never left your sputtering form as he cut the stitches. "So I'm just so sorry, Kurloz, I—" He silenced you by pressing his rough lips against yours. You blinked in shock, reeling backwards. A hand wrapped around your neck and the two of you fell backwards into the dry bathtub, him on top of you, feverishly kissing your lips. You returned the kiss with renewed vigor, not caring about the indigo blood that coated your lips or the face paint that you two were now sharing.  
"Those motherfucking red feelings that made me leave Muelin were caused by you." His voice was deep and dry, but not as much as you had through it would be. It was clearly unused but seemed to be getting better with each spoken word and action. He trailed his lips down your jaw and neck, causing you to moan out his name.  
"Kurloz… Kurloz, I—"  
"I couldn't up and stand it anymore." He moved over you, straddling you in the bathtub as he licked and kissed your exposed flesh. "Then you had to up and play with my motherfucking horns… Making them so…" He growled against your sweet as you gasped. "Motherfucking slick in your soft hands." He bit down sharply, making you moan out again from the sudden advances. How long had he felt this way? Your hands tangled in his hair, brushing the base of his abused horns and making you hiss and pull back your injured hand. "I had to tell you with my own voice... I had to motherfucking touch and feel you..." He took your lightly bleeding hand in his and brought it to his mouth, licking away the small crimson beads that snuck past the stitches. "Taste you..." The feeling of his rough tongue on your tender skin made your body shiver in pain and pleasure. It hurt to have something so rough against such a torn area, but knowing it was him doing it all you could do was submit to the feeling. "I'm redder for you than your motherfucking blood. I'm going to make you my matesprit." It wasn't a request. The highblood was demanding something from you; something you were more than willing to give him.


	4. 50's Slang

Sure hearing a slur of 50's slang you didn't fully understand was sometimes a little bazaar, you had to admit that you did miss it. You really hoped against hope that you wouldn't knock on his door to find him with some girl sprawled out on the floor. That would be the last thing you wanted to see for two reasons: one you really liked the troll Cronus Ampora and two that wasn't how you wanted to learn about troll anatomy. With a quick knock on the apartment door you only had to wait about four seconds.

"Wvho's out there? It doesn't matter, the door to my pad is open and I need a favwor." He seemed to be yelling which caused to you raise an eyebrow, but you opened the door. One foot in front of the other you moved towards the sound of his voice. The voice was coming from his bedroom. You paused before opening the door. "Yo, you still there chief?"  
"Uh…" Turning the handle cautiously you walked in. "Cronus wh—"  
"(N-Name)? No! Wvait—"  
"Oh my god!" You managed to successfully jump backwards, tripping over the handle of one of his guitars, and slamming your head into the wall as you hit the ground. "Fuckin—fuck!" You exclaimed, while trying to conceal the sight from your eyes.  
"(N-Name)?" You weren't looking at Cronus or you would have seen the violet blush that covered his face. He was fully nude, hands chained to the headboard. Of course you had opened the door expecting… well you didn't exactly know what to expect but a naked Cronus was the last thing you had thought.  
"Cronus—what are—how did—I just—" You had no words for the situation; covering your eyes with both hands while trying to conceal the growing red blush on your face had taken away all sense.  
"I'd love to bash ears with you, (Name), but do you think you can get me some threads first?" Had you been more coherent you could have heard the nervousness in his voice. However, this dissipated just as quickly as it had shown up. You threw the first thing that you grabbed in the general direction of the seadweller's voice. A small chuckle escaped him.  
"Not to sound ungrateful kitten, but could you throwv me more than socks? …And maybe throwv it wvithin my reach?" There are not enough shades of red to describe your color, it was a physical impossibility.  
"S-Sorry!" You got to your feet, still blocking out the naked seadweller with one hand. You found a blanket and thanked whatever god happened to be on your side as you tossed it to him. There was a small shuffle.  
"You can look nowv, not that I wvould havwe complained before." Oh god he was so flirtatious but you would be lying if you said it didn't make you melt a little. You could have sworn the temperature in the room skyrocketed when you turned back to Cronus.  
Both hands were cuffed to the driftwood headboard, lifting the top half of his body just slightly from the bed. His normal clothes were scattered about below the foot of the bed. A dusted purple blush covered his face and his breathing was slightly labored, he had clearly fought with the sheet to try and cover as much of him as possible. God it was a magnificent failure. The royal purple covering only managed to cover one leg and part of his lower torso. _If only he had struggled with it a little less…_ You gulped heavily, trying to push those thoughts from your mind.  
"D-Do you have the key or should I call someone… or what?"  
"Meenah has the key." Instantly your heart ceased with pain. Meenah… had you not been in the presence of your flushcrush you would have sighed sadly. Oh shit, you did anyway.  
"Should I go get the key from her or is she coming back?" You inquired, more withdrawn than you had been from the conversation a few seconds ago.  
"I don't think she'll be comin' back an' if ya can get the key from her than you're a miracle wvorker." If you could have just left him there you would have. Even though he and Meenah… you couldn't just leave him like this.  
"Move a little." You stated, losing all playful banter in your voice as you leaned over the bed a little.  
"(N-Name), wvhat are—" There was a small click as the first handcuff slipped off his wrist. He blinked, examining the tools in your hand.  
"I lock myself out of my apartment a lot." You explained as you looked at the second handcuff. It was more complex than the first, which meant you were going to have to lean over him for an extended period. Why in the name of fuck did he have a single bed… A few minutes ago you would have enjoyed straddling him to get the handcuff off, but the reminder of his love for Meenah cut too deep. "Just… hold still for a minute…"  
"A-Alright, doll. You don't havwe to tell me twvice." Had you been looking down you would have seen Cronus biting his lower lip as your body brushed against his, so close to his flesh he could feel your heat radiate against his cool skin. It was torture for the highblood, having you only inches away. He needed something to change his attention, anything would be fine but you seemed too focused on the lock to bring up any conversation. "I-I knowv you're probably wvondering wvhat happened…"  
"Not really." You half shook your head. "Pretty obvious." He blinked at your response. Did this kind of this happen often in human culture? If so why hadn't he heard of it? Did they get tied up in their sleep by their friends a lot? Was it common? Asking any of these questions would have highlighted the fact he wasn't human… looking at you that's all he wanted to be. He had been too lost in his thoughts that he only was pulled back to reality when something wet landed against his cheek.  
"(Name)?" Clear liquid was falling from your eyes. "Wvhat happen? Are you hurt?"  
"My…" You swallowed, trying to calm the searing pain in your throat. It only caused more tears to call. "My eyes just hurt from looking at the lock. It's nothing."  
"…" He could tell that you were lying he just couldn't understand why. If you were hurt he could help. He wanted to help. He hated to see you cry, it made him feel like a fream. "Ya knowv I'vwe been told I'm a great listener." There was a snap as you put too much pressure on your lock pick at his words. Instantly his expression turned from concerned to downright worried.  
"Why… why do you like her?" You couldn't help the words that slipped from your mouth, pain ringing through them. Cronus blinked in pure confusion.  
"Wvho?"  
"Meenah. Why do you like her?" Your eyes were lightly red and more tears fell, you were simply unable to hold them back anymore. "I… I know that she's a troll and a highblood but…" You shook your head, pulling your second pick out. "I'm sorry. It's not of my business. You two are perfect for each other. I'm glad that she finally returned your advances. I'm happy for you." Two and two connected in Cronus's mind.  
"Do you think that wve pailed?"  
"Cronus you're tied to a fucking bed and Meenah has the key. I'm not stupid." You snapped as quickly as your second lock pick. You threw it across the room and began to pull out your third and final one, only to have him grip your hand gingerly.  
"(Name), Meenah and I didn't pail. I got out of the showver and decided to havwe a cool cat nap. Since trolls usually sleep in sopor it's old habit to go… all natural. Meenah tied me up wvhen I was sleeping and wvoke me up as she left. It's true that I had flushed feelings for Meenah for a wvhile, but… uh, something else caught my eye."  
Oh shit. You had just made a scene for nothing. You had once again jumped to conclusions and completely fucked up. You buried your head in your hands.  
"Cronus, I am so fucking sorry." You hated yourself right now. "I just… oh god, I'm so sorry!" He chuckled, causing you to look at him a bit angry. Why was he laughing? What was so funny about you being an idiot.  
"Sorry doll, but the wvay you reacted wvhen you thought Meenah and I wvhere in the red quadrant wvas just too good. One might just think that you wvere flushed for me." He joked at you playfully. Instead of returning the laugh, you looked away. He thought your feelings were a joke. "That's a big tickle, eh, (Name). You bein' flushed for me."  
"What if I was?" You questioned. You had already made an ass out of yourself, you might as well go for twice. "What if when you were fake flirting with me, I was really flirting back?"  
"Wvho said I was fake flirting?" You looked back from the ground to him as he wrapped his free arm around you. "Wvhat if the something else wvas you?" He had been lifting himself with his arm while pulling you closer to him. "Wvhat if I was on the hook for you and wvhat if… I did this?" With that warning his cool lips connected with yours, free arm pushing you up to him even more. It took no time for you to be enthralled in the kiss. Within seconds his predatory teeth nipped at your lips and you gladly parted for him. Your arms tangled in him, one slipping around his back and the other messing up his perfect hair. For some reason this simple act gave you great satisfaction as the kiss deepened even further. Every few seconds there would be a jolt as he pulled against his still restrained arm.  
"(Name)…" He flipped, instantly sending you under him so that he could touch you with his bound arm. You were pinned between him and the corner of the bed connecting with the wall.  
"C-Cronus, it—ah!" A shiver ripped through your body as he nipped at your neck, licking and running his sharpened teeth over your delicate flesh. You moaned heavily, unable to control yourself in the oh-so-talented seadwellers hands. His claws softly played with your skin along your waste, wanting to touch every part of you. He growled against your skin, as one of your hands brushed against his left horn. It was all he could do to keep his restraint as he saw you flushing beneath him.  
"I'd be careful if I were you, kitten, otherwise I might get real gone real fast." This time it was your turn to smirk.  
"Cronus, you're still chained to the bed. That means I have an advantage." With that you kicked off the sheet that was covering him.


	5. Constant Yelling

You hated to admit to yourself that you missed the angry yelling from the apartment next to yours. It was possible that the foul-mouth troll finally took one of the noise warnings seriously? You knew that the superintendent of the building had threatened him with eviction at least ten times. Thanks to Karkat Vantas, your apartment's rent was only a fraction of what it used to be. The only downside was that you had to listen constant yelling seven days a week at all hours—well until now. You fought off a shiver as you slipped outside along the outdoor path that led to troll's apartment. Snow dusted the ground, crunching under each step you took. You approached his apartment number, number 69. After a few raps on the door you received no answer.  
"Karkat?" Another knock with no response. You pulled out the item in your pocket, a key that Karkat had given you. Of course he had made it clear it was only for emergencies and it in no way shape or form gave you the right to enter his hive. Never thinking twice about it, you walked into the apartment. "Karkat!" You called again, no answer. He must not have been home. That explained it. When you were about walk out when you heard quiet sobbing. Okay something was very wrong. You quickly made your way into the house, following the sound of crying. You opened your mouth to say something when you saw Karkat on the couch, sobbing quietly.  
**"****But… the hemospectrum…" The young female troll looked at the slightly older leading—and shirtless male.**  
You raised an eyebrow inquisitively at the odd purple colored scars along the lead's chest. You did have to admit, you were a bit curious as to what they were.  
**"****Hemospectrum be damned!" The male shook his head. "I have feelings of the deepest scarlet for you, Parane. I want you to be my matesprit,"**  
"Wow, this is garbage." You, being you, couldn't keep your opinions to yourself anymore; even if that meant Karkat would know you practically broke into his house. Karkat spun around, small streaks of red down his face, as he glared at you.  
"(Name)! What the fuck are you doing in my hive!?" He hit pause on the movie, which made you want to laugh. You had no idea why he would want to pause such a terrible movie. As far as you were concerned there should only be two buttons for a movie like this: stop and fast forward. Of course, you still had to defend why you were in his apartment uninvited.  
"Sorry!" You held up your hands defensively. "You were quiet."  
"You nookstain! What's your point?!"  
"You're never quiet, when I came over to see what was wrong I heard you crying! I thought—"  
"I wasn't fucking crying!" He interrupted angrily, getting to his feet and walking towards you. Usually you would have bolted because it was the smart thing to do, but you were far too caught up in the play on words that you intended to use.  
"I thought you were dying, but the only thing that died here is cinema." You were actually pretty proud of that, until you took note of the angry troll in front of you. "Whatever, you're fine so—" You turned, attempting to leave only to be caught by the wrist.  
"Not so fast, bulge-licker! You can't just insult a fucking amazing piece of art like this and walk the fuck out!"  
"Karkat, this isn't art. This is word vomit projected onto a screen. I've seen better wordplay on a fortune cookie." You really should have just shut up, but again you were you and you did not know when to shut up.  
"That's it, shit for brains!" He pulled you roughly over to the couch. "We're going to watch this from the beginning and you're going to beg me to forgive what a stupid asshole you are."  
"Karkat, no!" You attempted to tug away from him. "I don't want to watch this idiotic movie!"  
"Too fucking late, (Name). You chose to watch it when you broke into my fucking hive."  
"I didn't break i—Karkat get off!" You shrieked as he sat on the couch, wrapping both his arms and legs around you to the point where you couldn't even squirm away. Not that you wanted to, but you'd never tell him that. He was so very warm and comfortable… Had you not been stubborn to a fault and he not be a screaming prick you would have probably snuggled against him.  
"Not a chance. You're going to watch this whole movie and when it's over you're going to admit it's good and stop fucking bothering me." He hit the play button from the beginning. You groaned, settling in for what would surely be the longest movie of your life.

"Do you…" You hadn't realized that you had snuggled up to him about half way through the movie. Even more surprising was the fact that he didn't yell about it. The reason he wasn't complaining was because it was about twenty degrees in the apartment. "Do you have the second one?" Apparently it was part of a trilogy. A self-satisfied smirk found its way to Karkat's lips. You'd by lying if you said you didn't think it was pretty sexy. You had had a thing for this troll since he moved in about almost seven months ago.  
"Yeah, I'll put in the second one after I turn up the gogdamn hea—why is the fucking door open!?" Your eyes widened as Karkat looked at you. You had forgotten that you left the door open. The first six feet from his door was covered in snow. Wind whipped, sending gusts of snow inside again.  
"Oh…" For once your mind was blank. "Karkat, I am so sorry. I didn't mean to—"  
"No wonder it's so fucking cold in here!" He slammed the door shut, pushing part of the snow out with it.  
"Karkat, I didn't—"  
"Just try not to fuck anything else up for a gogdamn second." He walked to the kitchen. You bit your lip, looking down. Why did you have to do something so stupid when you were finally getting close to him? You shook your head, a few stay tears falling from your face as you got to your feet. You grabbed a sticky note from the desk, scribbled on it and stuck it to the TV before walking out and towards your apartment, closing the door gently. Why did you always have to fuck shit up?

(Karkat)  
I knew she would like the movie, that's why I was quiet. I was hoping she would worry and come to see if I was okay. I was hoping that she cared about me. Everything was going perfectly, just like a romcom except a little better. She smelled like coconut milk and about halfway through the movie she moved as close as she could to me. I could almost taste her scent, it was so intoxicating.  
I had red feelings for this human darker than even my blood but she was too damn dense to see it. I knew that I often came off as an asshole, but she still hung around me so I must have been doing something right… right? Maybe I was going about it the wrong way. If there was one thing I learned from romcoms it was that I needed to show I cared, at least a little. I had already showed he what a good movie was, so it was a start. The hot chocolate should help a little. I couldn't stand the shit but (Name) always talked about it.  
Honestly, I was glad she left the fucking wind-stopper open, but I didn't want her to get one of those odd human diseases from being cold. I doubted that she'd want to get warm by being against me. Her soft skin against mine, being as close to me as she possibly could… a shiver ran through my body and my hemopumper jumped just thinking about it. After a moment I put back on my usually façade and grabbed the warm drinks.  
"Listen, fuckass, just drink this before you freeze off your weird pink skin. I know you didn't mean—(Name)?" There was no trace of her. It took only a second for me to notice that her shoes and coat were gone. "What the fuck did she—Fuck." A frown formed on my face as I saw the sticky note stuck to the television.  
**_I'm sorry Karkat. You were right about the movie, it was really good. I won't bother you again._**  
With a sharp growl I slammed down the drinks on the table, sending a crack up one of the cups and chocolate liquid onto the table.  
"Fuck…" I cursed at myself, the cold liquid now in a pool on the table and floor. It had been almost an hour and the temperature was almost normal thanks to the heat-burster. Why did I have to be such a fucking waste of space? I was too much of a fucking coward to admit my feelings to the human and she… she deserved better. She deserved better than a stupid mutant troll who couldn't even—  
"Karkat?" I looked up from the table to see (Name) standing there. I quickly got to my feet. She looked like she had been outside this whole time. Then it hit me.  
"You locked yourself out, didn't you?" I was about to insult her for being so spaced out but the words froze on my tongue. Gog she looked so cold… So soft… and I was a little hot. I grabbed the blanket from on the back of the plush seating and walked towards her.

(You)  
You had sat outside for an hour, idiotically locking yourself out of your apartment. You were angry but also hurt. Why did he have to always yell at you? Why did you even care? For that matter, why had you given him the only spare key to your apartment? There was no helping it. Choking back your pride you walked back to the apartment. You didn't bother knocking. What would have been the point? He was going to be pissed anyway so fuck him.  
"Kar—" You stopped. He was on his knees, cold hot chocolate spilled all over the coffee table and floor. "Karkat?" He turned, instantly getting to his feet. He didn't seem upset but he did frown after a second.  
"You locked yourself out, didn't you?" You looked down, but nodded. He was walking towards you, you could see his feet moving.  
"Could I use the key I—" Something was wrapped around your shoulders and pulled you closer to Karkat. His arms wrapped around you, cloaking you from the world. "Karkat?" His mouth rested on your neck. "K-Karkat what are—"  
"I'm warming you up." His breath made your knees want to give out. He was so warm. He began to breath heavily on your neck. "This is what humans do to warm up, right?"  
"K-Karkat…" You hadn't meant to moan out his name like that but the way he was—oh god! You could feel his tongue slide across your skin, the two of you under the blanket's warmth. "Wha—oh god!" You couldn't suppress the trembling of your body.  
"Do you like that (Name)?"  
"K-Karkat if you keep licking me, I—ah!" He nipped at your exposed skin. You moved your hands under his shirt, causing him to shiver from the chill of your skin. You brushed what felt like protruding scars from his skin, your mind brought back to the movie you had just watched. Before you could say another word his mouth claimed yours, instantaneously licking the bottom lip for entrance. You would gladly let him have access. The kiss wasn't at all what you were expecting. It was tender and passionate at the same time, he wanted to taste you; all of you. The need for air was all the separated you.  
"(N-Name)?"  
"Mm?" You were trying to catch your breath.  
"Did you…" He swallowed. "Did you shut the door?"


	6. Triggering Chatter

You had avoided going into your neighbor's apartment, honestly for fear of being detained with a four hour lecture on the triggering implications of such actions. You had, unfortunately, heard this particular lecture enough to have it almost completely memorized—not that he would know. The sweater wearing troll Kankri Vantas wouldn't give you a word in edge wise. It was kind of annoying. Okay that was a lie, you loved his talking but there was one thing that transcended annoying; the absolute worst thing, his whistle. Some days you just wanted to shove the little piece of red plastic down his throat.  
The silence that hung over the wall connecting your apartments was unnatural to say the least, even if it was a temporary reprieve from the lectures. As much as he sometimes sounded condescending you loved his voice. You couldn't put your finger on exactly what it was that made you want to hear him talk; weather it was his smooth words, how naturally he spoke, or that he actually had the courage to keep talking when nobody wanted to hear him anymore. Nobody but you. You made your way out of your dwelling hesitantly and walked along the hallway. The apartment in question, 614H, came into view. You took a breath and knocked on the door. Nothing. A fresh wave of worry swept over you. It was seven at night on a Sunday. There was literally no reason for him not to be home and you hadn't seen him leave. Not that you were stalking or following him! Heavens no, that would be so triggering. You were worried about him.  
"Kankri?" You called, knocking again. Finally a noise rang out. That god forsaken whistle. Annoyance instantly cloaked your face and you turned to leave, taking your actions as "an invasion of privacy that would be almost always be considered triggering". Much to your surprise, however, the whistling almost instantly quit then started again in two short blasts. Annoyance was quickly replaced by confusion and confusion with concern. "Kankri? Can I come in? Once for yes, two for—"  
"Shut that whistling up!" One of your other neighbors stepped out. "What is wrong with—"  
"DUDE!" You were quick to anger more than you liked to admit. But right now a guy that you liked could be in real trouble and this asshole was going to yell about noise complaints? "If it bothers you soooooo much get back in your flat and bitch about it on a blog!" He quickly retreated into his own apartment without another word. "Kankri, I know this is probably going to trigger you but I'm coming in anyway." You opened the unlocked door and stepped inside the meticulously clean apartment. On the coffee table were two books that you supposed Kankri would refer to as light reading: one was a dictionary, the other a thesaurus. You followed the faint sound of whistling to what you supposed was Kankri's bedroom._Of course it was, who else would it be?_ You shook your head at your idiocy as you slowly pushed open the door. Kankri was on the floor, wrapped in his sweater, three blankets, and shivering violently. The whistle was in next to his mouth and was making a small screech with each breath.  
"(N-N-N-Name) I am v-v-v-very p-pleased that y-you—"  
"Oh my god!" You ran over to him. "Kankri are you okay? What happened? Are you hurt?" He strained himself to shake his head.  
"N-No. I d-do believe th-that I hav-v-v-v-ve what y-you w-would c-call a c-cold. N-Now th-through ob-observ-v-vation I c-can s-see w-why you w-would c-c-c-c-call it that." He was going to attempt to give a lecture about being sick even when he was shivering so much he could hardly speak a sentence. "It s-seems that  
"Shh!" You shook your head, moving to help Kankri up. He started to pull away. "I know, I know, touching is one of your triggers but just this once can you overlook it so I can help you? Please?" He just looked at you, some hidden emotion playing behind his eyes.  
"I s-s-sup-pose just this onc-ce." You helped him up onto the bed, making sure that his pillows kept his head elevated.  
"If your throat hurts you don't have to talk. It doesn't look like a cold, it looks like the flu." He looked at you, the emotion that looked very much like sadness focused on you. "I'll be right back. Don't move." As soon as you said it you knew you'd regret it.  
"(N-Name)! It is very t-t-triggering to command-d-d—"  
"I know." You nodded regretfully. "It's triggering to command someone to do something just because that's what I feel they are supposed to be doing. You told me that four months ago when I almost punched Gamzee for squeaking that horn in my ear. It's also triggering to threaten to punch people as it intrudes on both their personal space and boarders of violence creating more violence." He blinked at this. "So PLEASE don't move, Kankri." You rephrased your command into a plea before walking out of the apartment back to your own. You didn't know that his eyes stayed on where you had walked out long after you left. You couldn't help but sigh as you rummaged through the cupboards for chicken soup. You were constantly triggering him and that was the absolute last thing you wanted to do. You wouldn't mind the lectures but every time he lectured you by the end of it he just seemed sad. Campbell's condensed soup. Awesome. With another malcontent sigh you walked back to the previously-lecture-happy troll's apartment, can of soup in hand. You stopped at his kitchen, heating the soup and prospective water in a red bowl. You giggled to yourself, all of Kankri's dishes were bright red. He had once told you that it was because he was proudly displaying his blood color, of course that was just the first sentence of the hour and a half lecture. Another giggle as the microwave beeped. It took you only a few minutes to put it in a red water bottle and walk back to Kankri. For a brief moment you considered feeding it to him with a spoon but then you considered the twenty ways that was triggering. He had his eyes closed, but clearly wasn't asleep. The instant you walked in his eyes snapped open again and focused on you. He looked like he was about to cry.  
"Here." You smiled gingerly at him, handing him the water bottle and some cold medicine. "This'll help with the pain."  
"Y-You…" He swallowed, his throat must have been dry. "You came back?"  
"Huh? Of course I did. I told you I'd only be gone a minute." He took the warm container in hand, slowly sipping on it, eyes focused on the blanket clenched in his other hand.  
"Usually when people—or trolls—s-say that they d-don't come back until t-they t-t-think I'm gone." Kankri's expression hadn't changed, he wasn't complaining or wishing out loud; he was stating a fact.  
"Kankri…" He looked up at you and you suddenly realized that you had no idea what to say. You had no knowledge on how to comfort someone in this condition. So you did the next best thing, you handed him the medicine you had brought in. "Here, this should make you feel a little better." You expected him to lecture you on how human medicine may not help trolls or at least ask you what it was, but instead he just put it in his mouth and swallowed with some chicken soup. "Well, you should get some rest. I can come back to check on—" You turned to begin leaving only to have Kankri grab your arm. This was quite shocking to you as usually touching you was one of his triggers. Instantly he let go.  
"I-I apologize f-for triggering you, (Name). I-I was just w-wondering if you could possibly stay a l-little longer. I-It would be helpful t-to me i-if you would read." You raised an eyebrow at him slightly.  
"Read?"  
"Y-Yes." He confirmed with a small nod. "You s-see, to help me sleep I-I often read but b-because I am not feeling w-well, I w-was wondering i-if it's not too much trouble f-for you…"  
"Of course I'll read to you Kankri." A small smile came to your face. You didn't have a voice as smooth as Kankri's was but if he needed you to read to him so he could feel better, you'd jump at the chance. Honestly you expected it to be something ungodly complicated, but you had already agreed without thinking it through. The book he wanted you to read was tucked between a dictionary and a thesaurus but you blinked at the book itself. Shakespeare.  
_Yeah that's about right._ You thought, opening the book and sitting in the chair you had brought in from the kitchen. Of course, you promised that you would make sure it wouldn't leave marks on the floor before Kankri could even get a word in about it. You began reading, doing everything in your power to not stumble over the strange words that Shakespeare put in just to throw you. After about forty minutes of careful stumbling over the old words you glanced at Kankri. His eyes were closed and his breathing was purely rhythmic. A small smile passed over your lips as you slipped the book back.  
"I guess that I was either boring enough to put you to sleep or you really like this book." You were speaking to yourself—or rather the sleeping Kankri. "Sadly I'm not nearly as graceful in my words as you are, Kankri. Hell, I could listen to you talk all day, which more than not tends to be the case when you're not sick."  
"I happen to enj-joy the sound of your voice (Name)." _Oh fuck_ You spun around like someone had just yelled 'fire'. Kankri wasn't sleeping, he was looking right at you. You opened your mouth to say something but upon realizing you had already said way too much, you shut it again. You opened it again, thoughts running through your head like a hamster on a wheel.  
"Kankri! I didn't mean—"  
"It is very t-triggering to be spoken about w-when you think I cannot hear you." At least most of his shiver had stopped. "I am howev-ver glad that you enjoy my lectur—conversations with you. It had always appeared th-that you didn't enjoy them. If you truly d-did enjoy talking with me then why did you always l-look so miserable at the end of our conversation? I hope you won't find this triggering but you looked more miserable at the end than anyone else I speak with or have previously s-spoken too. It is quite triggering for you to act like t-that then you to say the opposite when you don't think I can h-hear you."  
"You get quiet." The words came out in a half whisper, suddenly finding the ground to be interesting.  
"(Name) please speak up. I am trying not to be triggered by your elusive behavior, but—"  
"You start to get quiet about ten minutes before you're done talking so I know you're almost done and… I guess I don't want you to be. I like it when you talk to me. Even if it sometimes feels like you're talking at me instead of to me… I didn't mean to trigger you. I'm sorry."  
"I am not triggered as of yet, simply very close to it. I-If you would like…" It didn't sound like a shiver that time. It sounded like a stutter. You broke your gaze from the ground to look at Kankri. He had a light shade of red covering his face. "If you would like… you may come and lay next to me."  
"Huh?"  
"I do not wish to… deprive you of being close enough to hear me and I have been told that I talk in my sleep. Additionally I do find myself cold still, even with the layers and sweater so I believe that it would be mutually beneficial for the two of us if you would stay and join me under the blanket." You couldn't help but giggle a little at this. "If you were simply going to laugh at my attempts to be closer to you and form a red—" You leaned forward to sit up at the same time he moved back towards you. In the movies your lips would have met perfectly and the two of you would have shared a kiss that would rival that of any couple in love. In reality your foreheads collided and sent him back several inches while you lost your balance and fell forward onto his lap.  
"Oh my gosh!" You attempted to pull yourself back, unintentionally noticing the space where you landed; directly between his legs, seemed to be shifting. "Kankri, I—"  
"Uuhh." He groaned at the loss of your weight, then realizing exactly what he had done, he began to apologize. "(Name) I am so very sorry, it seems that I cannot control myself as much as I—" You were looking up from your half push-up position as he quickly leaned down, quickly bringing a hand to each side of your face and capturing your lips in what was anything but a chaste kiss. You responded to his touches, slowly being pulled onto his lap as he tongue danced on your lips. They were requesting something that you were in no position to deny. Then you remembered something that he had once told you. He was celibate. You pulled back, not wanting to break this kiss but caring about his vow more.  
"Kankri, you're celibate… we can't—"  
"My vow… is the last thing on my mind, (Name). It is a voluntary vow that I am more than willing to break for you. That having been said my offer still stands and I find it rude that you have yet to respond. At the same time it seems likely that you could have forgotten or perhaps it was simply unintentionally unclear so I will rephrase it." His red and yellow eyes locked directly with your (e/c) ones as he spoke. The tremble and the shiver in his voice were completely gone, now replaced by something you had never seen in his eyes before; a deep wanting—one would even go so far as to call it lust. "(Name) would you join me under the blankets and in a matespiritship?"


	7. Honking and Laughter

You really missed the sound of honking and laughter.  
The indigo blood Gamzee Makara was a fairly decent guy aside from the copious amounts of noise that always seemed to explode from his residence on a daily basis. This became the norm after the first week and you quickly found out that Gamzee's place was THE party apartment. You didn't know why the ever-loud studio was quiet but you intended to find out. You had no idea why he would be living in the apartment next to you, aside from the fact that this building had the best view of the ocean in the city. The decks overlooked the ocean and the large community terrace had the best sight of all. Gamzee would often be there with a green slime-like pie and a 2-liter bottle of Faygo. You had to pass it in order to get to your apartment and the usually zoned out Gamzee would always make it a point to turn as you did.  
A smile would be on his face and he'd give you a friendly wave. He would call you by the first three letters of your name and tack on –sis at the end. Honestly it was kind of cute. He always asked if you wanted to "chill the motherfuck out" and "have some wicked elixir". You'd always decline. With school and work you had almost no time to do anything aside from study for said school. If you were going to be truthful a second time you would admit that you had no idea why he kept asking you to hang out. After you declined he would smile again and tell you he would be sure to catch you the "next motherfuckin' time you had had a free miraculous second". Come to think of it, he wasn't there when you passed the deck today.  
You threw on your shoes and coat. How could you be so stupid! Something must have been wrong, he was there every day! Why didn't you notice he wasn't there earlier? You quickened the pace through the halls filled with 417's family laughter and 419's new puppy. You reached 420 and paused, listening for any sound. None. You knocked on the door but directly after the first knock the door eased open. It hadn't been latched. Your heart started racing but you forced it to calm down. The door was often left cracked, it was just the way he was. Empty pie tins were scattered along with Faygo bottles drained of their contents. A large pile of bike horns rested in the corner along with several scattered everywhere.  
"Gamzee?" You called, receiving no answer. You walked in past the empty containers and a small noise caught your attention. It sounded like… a hiss? You raised an eyebrow and moved towards the source—the kitchen. The closer you got the more you could smell something peculiar. You couldn't place exactly what it was but it smelt like it was burning. Gamzee was leaned over the counter, gripping his left hand. "Gamzee?"  
"(Nam)sis?" He blinked, turning to you. "What are you all up and doin' here?"  
"That… is an excellent question." You admitted. "Okay so you usually—" You stopped, eyes falling on the stove. Sure enough this was the cause of the strange smell that had assaulted your senses. A spilled pie tin lay on the floor, a trail of the green slime leading from the open oven. The sopor was burning, crisping, and flaking off into black char. He had dropped it when he tried to take it out. You looked at Gamzee. "What did you…?" Your eyes fell on his hand. You were no medic, but you knew enough to recognize a third-degree burn when you saw one. "Gamzee! What were you thinking!?"  
"This ain't no big deal sis. My thinkpan just forgot to tell this motherfucker that the pan was hot." You grabbed him by the wrist, flipping on the cold water from the sink. "Ah! Sis, that motherfuckin—" You put his hand under the water and he fell silent. You were shaking your head as you held his hand under the running water.  
"Keep it under the water. I'll be right back—I need to get some things from my apartment. Don't move!" You started out of his apartment only to get about ten feet from the kitchen and trip over one of the horns you had been so careful to avoid. You did some kind of ungraceful somersault to the ground.  
"(Nam)sis, are—"  
"I'm good. Just stay there." You made your way out of the apartment to return a few moments later with a first aid kit. "Alright, is the stinging gone?" You asked as you opened the white box on his counter.  
"Yeah sis. It's a motherfucking miracle. Is this water magic?"  
"No, tap water isn't magical." You shook your head, pulling out some bandages and such. "I'd usually say you should go to the hospital for a burn like that but I don't think they'd have any idea how to treat a troll. That and you'd probably scare some old people to death."  
"Na. You're all up and miraculous enough to know what to do."  
"This might sting a little." You warned him, putting the ointment on his hand and gently wrapping his injuries.  
"Hell, sis, it doesn't motherfuckin' hurt. Your hands are all kinds of soft." A blush dusted your cheeks as you carefully tied off the bandage.  
"Um…" You had forgotten what you were going to say. He smiled at your loss of words and you cursed yourself as your blush darkened.  
"Do you wanna chill out and have some wicked elixir on the deck with an invertabrother?"  
"Sure." You told him. "I have some time I guess. Do you have grape?"

"Does it still hurt?" You asked curiously. It had been about two hours since you had gotten up the courage to go into Gamzee's apartment to see why it was quiet.  
"Hell yeah it does, sis." He looked at you, breaking his gaze from the ocean. "You never answered my question. What made you decide to come and see a motherfucker?"  
"Oh, uh… Well." You took a drink of your grape Fagyo. He was drinking a strawberry one. "Your apartment was quiet. Usually it sounds like a party over here all the time so when there was nothing I guess…"  
"Hoh I get it. You were up and worried about this motherfucking clown."  
"Yeah, fine. I was worried, okay?" You huffed, taking another drink of your grape. It was quiet for a moment.  
"Sis?"  
"Hm?"  
"Have you ever tried mixing motherfucking grape and strawberry?" You didn't even raise an eyebrow at the strange soda question. Gamzee seemed to have a bit of an obsession with Faygo. When you had taken your first drink he had watched you like you were taking a test to operate a nuclear missile silo.  
"No, can't say I have." You took a third drink from your soda but before you could swallow your lips were met by Gamzee's. His tongue took the opportunity to part your lips and send strawberry soda from his mouth mixing with your grape and vice versa. You blinked, breaking the sudden kiss and swallowing your mouthful of soda. He gulped the soda in his mouth and licked his lips while staring hungrily at you.  
"What do you motherfuckin' think sis?"  
"It—" Before you could answer he pulled you into another kiss. The sweet taste of Faygo was still on his lips along with the strange bitter taste of sopor. He wrapped his arms around you, deepening the kiss and allowing you to taste more of him. He pleaded with you for entrance this time, nipping at your bottom lip playfully. You giggled a little and opened your mouth to allow better access. One of your arms snaked around him as well as the other tangled itself in his thick black locks at the base of his horns. The grape soda in your hand hit the ground, spilling its bubbling contents over the wooden balcony floor. The purple liquid quickly found its way off the terrace and dripped into the ocean below as Gamzee began to trail his kisses down your jawline and neck.  
"Sis…" He paused his soft kisses on your neck. "I'm motherfuckin' redder than Redpop for you."


End file.
